Weekday Services

Tuesday to Friday

9.15am
until 9.45am approx.

Morning Prayer - a brief service of prayers and readings to begin the day. Includes opportunity to pray for each other's concerns. Held in the Day Chapel in The Crossing (downstairs, inside the Darwall St. entrance.)

Wednesdays

11.00am
until 11.45am approx.

Holy Communion - a service of communion following the traditional service from the Book of Common Prayer. Held in the Day Chapel.

Wednesdays

1.10pm to 1.25pm

Quiet Time - A relaxed time for prayer, quiet and thinking with a simple reflection. Pop into the chapel during lunch or as you pass to be still during this simple service. Come beforehand at 1.00pm for refreshments.

Monday to Saturday

8.15am to 5.30pm

The Day Chapel (please click the link to find out more about the Day Chapel) is open for private prayer and reflection throughout the day. The chapel is provided with bibles and other literature for your use.

Worship and prayer are at the heart of the life of our Church community. At St Paul's we believe that as we gather in God's name, His Spirit helps us to worship and to encounter Him in the midst of our lives.

For this reason we offer a range of forms and styles of worship. We enjoy the difference in our personal preferences for worship - so you will find our services include a diverse range of people of all ages and backgrounds, including children.

Our fellowship listens eagerly to the word of God in the bible. In our preaching we try to allow the story of what God has done in Jesus Christ to speak to our experience of life today for prayer and action. At St Paul's Church we offer Emmaus - The Way of Faith as an opportunity to explore some of life's really big questions.

We regularly break bread and share wine together in services of Holy Communion, as Jesus asked His disciples to do in memory of Him.

Prayer is not just an activity associated with worship services. Our fellowship regularly gathers in housegroups and other meetings which include opportunities to pray together. The meetings of our Parochial Church Council and other groups include prayer - not just as a prelude to business, but in the expectations that God hears us and guides us.

St Paul's has a number of gifted musicians whose skills allow us to express ourselves to God in song. We are keen to use the best hymns and songs, both old and new, from different parts of the Church.

Lichfield Diocesan Deaf Chaplaincy

NOTE: All services in the area Deaf Churches are by arrangement:

Walsall

St Paul’s Church, Darwall Street

Wolverhampton

The Deaf Centre, Rupert Street

West Bromwich

St Mary Magdalene Church, Charlemont Farm

Stoke

The Deaf Centre, Wellesley Street, Shelton

Telford

Christchurch , Wellington

Shrewsbury

Harlescott Emmanuel Church, Mount Pleasant Road

CHURCH AMONG DEAF PEOPLE

Our main object is to share in worship through sign language.

People involved:
Anyone who is deaf or has a hearing deficiency. Hearing people who are learning sign language to encourage them to build up confidence to communicate with deaf people.

Time Commitment:
On the third Sunday in the month a service of Holy Communion or Afternoon Prayer with Deaf People is celebrated at St. Paul’s Church at 4.00pm.

What is there to celebrate?
To bring the Deaf People closer to God and to learn about Jesus and the Holy Spirit through the signing of the services. To bring the joy of worship and to know more about God. This year the Lichfield Diocesan Deaf Church Conference and Lichfield Church among Deaf People held their service at St. Michael and All Angels, Church, Penkridge on Easter Sunday afternoon when over sixty people attended.

Everyone is welcome to join in the worship together.

If you are interested in learning more about sign language in worship see Rev’d Peter Lees.

We use the Darwall Street entrance for Sunday services. We aim to make our services accessible to all and we provide large-print bibles and service booklets. Toilets are accessible throughout the service and a lift allows easy access for those who find stairs difficult.

Baptism

St Paul's is very happy to receive requests for services of baptism and thanksgiving. Those who are not regular members of the Church at the time of enquiry are invited to get to know the Church community by worshipping with us and will usually take part in some form of preparation.

A Service of Baptism (sometimes called 'Christening')

Baptism marks the beginning of a journey with God which continues for the rest of our lives, the first step in response to God's love. For everyone involved, it is a moment to celebrate and rejoice at what God has done for us in Christ, making important promises and declaring the faith we share. In the service of baptism, the wider community of the local Church and friends welcome the new Christian, promising support and prayer for the future.

Remember that baptism isn't only for children. In past times, most people were baptised when they were babies. But now many people who weren't baptised as children come to a decision about Christian faith and baptism of adults is much more frequent.

A Service of Thanksgiving for a Child

The birth or adoption of a child is a great cause for celebration. Many people are overcome by a sense of awe at the creation of a new life and want to express their thanks to God. This service provides an opportunity for parents and families to give thanks for the birth or adoption of a child and to pray for family life.

This service is not the same as Baptism, which is the path into membership of the Church, the Body of Christ (see above).

If you would like to find out more about these services, please follow the contact us link and contact the Church Office.

Marriage

Getting married in Church is something that many people hope for. For lots of couples, a Church wedding feels like the ideal way to celebrate the beginning of a marriage.

But when it comes to thinking about planning a wedding, many people don't find it easy to make the arrangements and are left with difficult questions:

Are we entitled to be married in Church?

Will the vicar want to know why we don't go to Church?

What if one of us has been married before?

Does it matter if we have been living together or have children already?

Can we have a say in the way the service is arranged?

How much does it cost?

If you, or someone you know, is this thinking about a wedding in Church, St Paul's can help you with answers to these questions.

A wedding is one of life's great moments, a time of serious commitment as well as good wishes, feasting and celebration. Marriage is intended by God to be a creative relationship, which enables both husband and wife to love and support each other always - in good times and bad - and to share in the care and upbringing of children.

For Christians, marriage is also an invitation to share life together in the spirit of Jesus Christ. It is based on a serious, public and lifelong promise between a man and a woman, declared and celebrated in the presence of God and before witnesses.

St Paul's Church at The Crossing is a wonderful venue for a wedding service and we are very happy to discuss with you the legal requirements and other questions you may have.

Prayer and Dedication after a Civil Marriage

A couple who are already married may choose to dedicate their life together to God. Though this is not a marriage service, it enables a husband and wife to commit themselves to each other before God in prayer, and to seek his blessing upon their shared life.

A service of dedication may be used when a civil marriage has taken place some years before, or more recently.

Thanksgiving for Marriage

This service may be adapted and used on occasions when a couple (or couples) reaffirm their vows together, to celebrate an anniversary, or after a time of separation or difficulty in a marriage.

If you have any enquiry relating to a wedding at St Paul's, or services of thanksgiving or the renewal of vows please follow the contact us link and contact the Church Office.

Funerals

God's love and power extend over all creation. Every life, including our own, is precious to God. Christians have always believed that there is hope in death as in life, and that there is new life in Christ over death.

Even those who share such faith find that there is a real sense of loss at the death of a loved one. Funerals and care for the bereaved are therefore very important to us.

Though the building has been extensively re-ordered, St Paul's Church at The Crossing remains a place of worship suitable for the reverent nature of a funeral service.

Every year, St Paul's holds a Service of Remembrance for those who have suffered bereavement in the preceeding year.

If you have any enquiry relating to a funeral at St Paul's, or services of burial or cremation in connection with St Paul's Church or its parish, please contact the Church Office by following the contact us link.

The Logo of St Paul’s Church

In ancient Greek tradition the letters of a name were turned back to front or disguised in some way and then combined with a significant symbol to form a monogram. In this case, the name “Paul” is combined with a Latin cross. It was designed in this way to act as a 'secret symbol' to identify Christians to each other as, at the time, to be a Christian meant persecution from the Romans. This logo is set into the floor of the shopping mall, under the Light Well Cross.

The Crossing Banner

The Crossing Banner combines a striking series of Christian symbols. Banners are hung over the shopping mall, and in the stained glass in the doors on the first floor balcony.

What The Symbols Represent

The Net
Jesus once introduced a parable in these words’ The kingdom of God is like a net’ (Matthew’s Gospel chapter 13 verse 47).

The Fish
Is a traditional symbol of The Christ, Jesus. The Greek word for ‘fish’ (icthus) provides the initial letters of the Greek for ’Jesus Christ, Son of God, Saviour’.

The Compass
Is a symbol of creation, to reflect God’s care not just for our spiritual lives but for everything about us.

The Bunting
Is a symbol of the Feast which will take place at the coming of God’s Kingdom. The vision of this Feast puts celebration at the heart of the Christian Gospel.